The Census has released its latest figures on who has and who doesn't have high-speed internet access. And while the news is initially pretty good, with just under 80% of Americans having high-speed internet, when you start to break down the data geographically, the news becomes a little more mixed.

Advertisement

Here's a table showing where each state in the country fell in terms of the national average. While several states were doing extremely well — for instance, New Hampshire at the very top of the scale and is inching towards 90% — others were well below the nation as a whole. Altogether 22 states had averages below the national average, with Mississippi, Arkansas, New Mexico, and Alabama all ranging between 10-20% below.

But even in states that are seemingly doing quite well, the truth about who is and isn't online is a little more complex than it may seem, with the averages of some states being pulled up by small areas with extremely high access, while still having areas that are well below the national average.

Advertisement

Check out this map of high-speed internet availability charted not just by state, but in a new census measure, also be metropolitan area. Some states that are high in overall internet access have high accessibility throughout the state. But many are a much more mixed bag.

California, for instance, shows up on the overall state chart as well above average. A quick look at the map, though reveals that it has pockets of both very high and very low access — and often the areas with extremely high internet access are right next to areas with very low access.